HELP desperately needed

[mongo]

Mongo uses a MAC and relies very very heavily on his ViewNX2 to view and organize his RAW images (currently version 2.6.0). Has been doing so for nearly 2 years now. He has a 2 screen side by side setup.


Today, after reviewing some photos and running them through a short slide show using ViewNX2, the program started playing up. This has never happened before. These were photos previously stored on the computer and run through View NX2 a few times with no issues.


For the first time ever however, Mongo dragged the open view NX2 program (while it was open) from the second screen and onto the main screen (being the MAC) i.e being the desktop of the MAC. It worked fine and no problems. Then Mongo dragged it back to its normal second screen location. That’s when the trouble started. At first it would simply not open any images that had been on the Mac “desktop” but worked for other functions. Before Mongo could do anything with it (like move the desktop photos to another location), the program opens by does not respond to anything now. The little coloured Apple wheel comes up (equivalent of the hourglass symbol on a PC) telling me its trying to do something but it never does. Mongo has had to "force quit" the program a few times now.


Had a talk to Apple and we decided to uninstall the View NX2 and reinstall it. Mongo used the program’s own “uninstaller” which came with the package.
Mongo reinstalled the program using his original disc (which has 2.3.0 version on it for now). However, the program is behaving with exactly the same defects as the uninstalled one.


Mongo tried Photoshop and other programs and they are all working correctly. Ran a virus scan - all well.

Other parts of the program open and look ready to run e.g the edit function and the movie editor etc but it is as if the program is having trouble locating the image files to work on them.

Mongo is absolutely lost without this program and is getting quite desperate at the thought of maybe never getting it to work on his computer again.


Not sure if it is the computer or the program, Mongo just knows that they are not wanting to work with each other.


Can anyone help or have suggestions as to who Mongo can contact PLEASE !

[davsv1]

Have you tried repairing permissions or run disk warrior?
Also try uninstalling and make sure you locate and clean any files in the library/system folders

[mongo]

Have you tried repairing permissions or run disk warrior?
Also try uninstalling and make sure you locate and clean any files in the library/system folders

big thanks for your suggestions.
Not vey tech knowledgeable. Not familiar with the first 2 you mentioned.
Have contacted Nikon who are sending Mongo instructions on how to clean up the files as per your 3rd suggestion. Mongo's understanding is that Mac have 2 library levels at which system folders may be kept. Mongo would have thought that the uninstall program that came with the View NX2 specifically for Mac , would incorporate the cleaning out of the library folders also - but maybe not.

Just got email instructions and off to try and uninstall and clean out the libraries. Hope this works and a huge thanks for your help and interest.

BTW - Nikon said there was a more up to date version for Mac than 2.6.0 in a 64 bit . Mongo looked for updates on his system when it was still working and it showed no upgrade from 2.6.0 ????

[I @ M]

There were one or maybe two versions that stopped working unexpectedly a while ago.
I am using 2.7.1 and the latest version is 2.7.4.
I would download the latest version HERE [SAVE THE SET UP FILE] and install that over the top of your current version and try again.
If you still have problems, uninstall it with C Cleaner and remove the registry entries and try a full install again.
The version I am using (windoze 64 bit) is working faultlessly.

[davsv1]

No problem,

Try the following....applications-utilities-disk utility, select your main disk and go "repair disk permissions" and then also "verify disk" after repair, it may help the problem or may not but it is good to do from time to time anyway
And I never trust auto uninstall programs, there are always files hiding somewhere

[mongo]

thanks you both so much. with some help from Nikon Asia, Mongo has put through a clean up utility and reinstalled the test version (2.7.4). It is working but it had a funny little turn to its old defect momentarily. So, Mongo moved all the images on the desktop to elsewhere (as it seeks all the problems began when it tried to access the desktop images) just in case it was some kind of linking problem it had with desktop files. It now seems to be working normally and accessing all image files including the ones moved from desktop. Mongo is still not sure about it and is quite anxious to know it is working properly and for good this time. He should know over the next few days.

Davsv1 - Mongo will try the exercise you have indicated also and will do so from time to time.

With Mongo's old PC, it was easy to "clean it out" now and then of all temp files and the like. Still have not worked out how to to do the equivalent of that exercise on this Mac but hopefully will eventually.

thanks again guys and sorry for the panic.

[Wayne]

For the record, the Mac doesn't have a registry to bloat and clean like a Windows machine.

I suspect permissions or a faulty application like Andrew mentioned. Glad you got it working again.

[mongo]

For the record, the Mac doesn't have a registry to bloat and clean like a Windows machine.

I suspect permissions or a faulty application like Andrew mentioned. Glad you got it working again.

thanks Wayne - good to know so Mongo will not be trying to clean out what can't be cleaned out.

Also ran the repair permissions and verify disc. There were at least 6 or 8 permissions repair (don't know why) and no disc problems found.

It s still working as Mongo types, so he is starting to feel a little easier about its long term prospects.

Thanks to everyone again.

[ricktas]

Not much in the way of advice from a non Apple user, but can we be sure Mongo has not had a chew on something..maybe a chip.. and that is the cause of his dilemma ?

[mongo]

Not much in the way of advice from a non Apple user, but can we be sure Mongo has not had a chew on something..maybe a chip.. and that is the cause of his dilemma ?

Mongo did think "computer chip" was just another fancy name for their preparation. They did feel a little crunchier and drier than the usual but they came is such beautifully cut shapes and sizes. Best of all, not only did someone kindly pack them into Mongo's computer for him AND Mongo did not have to compete with the dreaded seagulls for them as they seem to pay no interest in them. Can you believe that !

It is still holding and maybe sorted out but we will never know what set it off after a year and a half of flawless operation.

[arthurking83]

For the record, the Mac doesn't have a registry to bloat and clean like a Windows machine.

......

Surely there must be some place on a Mac that stores preferences and application setups and information.

Just because it's not called the Registry, doesn't necessarily mean that there is nothing of the sort to structure a list of program data.


I have no idea why folks get worked up about the Windows Registry .. if you don't like it .. delete it then!

Sorry to hear about your issues Mongo.

AK is generally a huge fan of VNX2, but in a few recent releases, there have been problems on my PC of it too.
(mind you, my PC really needs a reinstall of the OS and programs after 3 or so years and lots of trialware I've looked at over these years).

Weird stuff that is not consistent nor repeatable .. sometimes random crashing and other times just non working(with the Windows blue circle icon .. they no longer use the hourglass, but you can change it if you feel the need)... and then working again, as if nothing was initially wrong!

I too am currently on the latest version 2.7.4 and now usually hesitate to update .. just for the sake of it.
Haven't had an issue now for a good few weeks, or months .. hang on, it's been a while since I noticed a problem with it, actually.

FWIW: it is far and away the most used program on my PC .. sometimes more so than my browser. If it's not uses every day at least a couple of times per day, then it may be about 729 times per year(OK, I'm allowed to miss one day per year).

If I experience an issue, and (eg) have to reinstall it for some reason(which I've done), I don't always automatically go in and clean out the registry just because I can. Usually just a straight reinstall and I won't see the problem I had earlier.

Come to think of it, I reckon the last time I had issues with VNX2 was about a few months after I got my D800E .. so about Sept-Dec last year, where I remember reinstalling it a couple of times in a short month or two period.
Don't remember any troubles with it since tho.

One thing to note tho... and this has been a problem not only with VNX2, but other image viewing software I also have.

If you have a very large tiff file in a folder that contains other images that you want to view, this can cause VNX2 to kind of seize up(in a sense). This was the last 'issue' I've had with VNX2.
But the issue is also present in FSViewer, Windows Photo Gallery and GeoSetter ... that I currently have the ability to use for image viewing.
The problem with the files is that they are massive 1 or 2+ Gigabyte panorama images in tiff format.

VNX2 just takes too long to even do anything about them, so I usually close it down before it gets a chance to render the thumbnails for those images.
FSViewer and Windows Gallery will render the thumbnails at some point .. I have no idea how long exactly to do so, as I usually hop off the PC and go make something(cuppa, dinner ... err.. other stuff) and come back and the program(s) will resume operation.

I don't use VNX2 to view images in general, really only just my NEFs. For general faster browsing(jpgs/tiffs), I use FSViewer instead.

SO if you have any images in a folder that you have active in VNX2, and this folder contains any non standard or super heavy duty tiff files, VNX2 can spit the dummy in a sense. You don't need to be trying to view the images, just trying to render the thumbnails causes issues.
What I do in instances like this is to place these heavy duty image files into separate directories. ie, in a sub folder to where the original images have been loaded into. I'll then call this folder something obvious like

/PTG_Pano or something easy like that. Just keeping these massive files separate from the regular raw/jpg or tiff files doesn't cause VNX any issues.

And, those tiff files don't even need to be super large either .. even a simple thing like LZW compression may(not will! .. may) cause problems with VNX2 as well. Usually you just may not see the thumbnail preview of that compressed tiff file, but this may also be hit and miss, in that it may cause VNX2 to seize up in protest too. Both VNX2 and CNX2 are particular about their flavour of LZW compression as well.

If you experience any issues with VNX2 again such as you have, check to see if you have any images in the active folder that may cause it to protest.

[Mathy]

Hi Mongo, glad to hear that you're issues are fixed. I was about to suggest a repair permissions/disk scan, but I'm late to the party. This often does fix up Macs that suddenly start being naughty. I recently bought a program called MacKeeper which I've found great for keeping the system running well and it's also good at finding files that get left over from things like uninstalls, deletions etc. Might be worth you checking it out, cheers Deb

[mongo]

Arthur thanks for the advice. Mongo narrowed it down to a handful of "corrupted" image files which had been on the desktop at the time Mongo dragged the open ViewNX2 from the second screen over to the primary screen. When Mongo says "corrupted", eh very strongly believes it was something like a "file extension" that was somehow changed or just would not let View NX2 open those files and froze but only in relation to the handful of files on the desktop at the time. other programs e.g. photoshop and the normal Mac browser could still access these file OK.

To test his theory of the file extension possibility, Mongo copied those files on a memory stick ad reopened them on his PC in photoshop and re-saved them. Then , Mongo put those files into the Mac and opened them using View NX2 and guess what ......they now work normally !! so, it was something to do with those files' coding that just would not let the ViewNX2 read them until it was repaired by the process Mongo used to effectively re-save them without the ill effects. That's Mongo's theory ......and he knows nothing about computers. Whatever ---- it works and Mongo now knows how to fix those handful of files to work with View NX2

Deb, you may think you are late to help but Mongo is so appreciative that you took the time and he has noted what you have said about permission /disc repair tool and the Mackeeper. Found some reference to Mackeeper in Mongo's recent desperate search for answers and now will explore that facility for potential future use. Again, Mongo's sincere thanks.

[Mathy]

Mongo, I don't want to sound like I'm spruiking but for the benefit of yourself and others, MacKeeper can:

1. Optimise your system
2. Scan and allow you to get rid of 'dead baggage' on your HDD
3. Provides your Mac security against malware, spyware and viruses (not that they tend to be an issue with a Mac - that's why I left the Windows world )
4. Provides Real Time Safe Browsing and Anti Virus scanning - a good idea

I'm a cynic, it requires things to work and be good before I'll buy in the 'software world'. The System Scan - 'dead baggage remover', saves me 20-30Mb every week of wasted file space. Doesn't sound like a lot, but I use a MacBook Air - so this is important.

I use this program manually, I don't like software running off and doing it's own thing, but if you want automatic, it's available.

Plus, the Support is pretty good, as is the price for what you get, cheers Deb

[mongo]

Mongo, I don't want to sound like I'm spruiking but for the benefit of yourself and others, MacKeeper can:

1. Optimise your system
2. Scan and allow you to get rid of 'dead baggage' on your HDD
3. Provides your Mac security against malware, spyware and viruses (not that they tend to be an issue with a Mac - that's why I left the Windows world )
4. Provides Real Time Safe Browsing and Anti Virus scanning - a good idea

I'm a cynic, it requires things to work and be good before I'll buy in the 'software world'. The System Scan - 'dead baggage remover', saves me 20-30Mb every week of wasted file space. Doesn't sound like a lot, but I use a MacBook Air - so this is important.

I use this program manually, I don't like software running off and doing it's own thing, but if you want automatic, it's available.

Plus, the Support is pretty good, as is the price for what you get, cheers Deb

Thanks again Deb - providing valuable info is never just spruiking.

The product interests Mongo even more now that you have told Mongo all the goodies it provides. Mongo already has some anti virus and firewall programs for the Mac but would like the clean up portion of the program as well. Maybe when this package expires Mongo may go over to the Mackeeper program. Mongo likes to rum the program when he wants and not when it decides to - so, that is useful function .

Cheers

[Ian]

pappa smurf has read this thread with interest, and is glad that Mongos' pc problems are on the mend. Pappa Smurf not being pc savy would probably freak out if that happened to him. mate. ian(aka pappa smurf)

[mongo]

pappa smurf has read this thread with interest, and is glad that Mongos' pc problems are on the mend. Pappa Smurf not being pc savy would probably freak out if that happened to him. mate. ian(aka pappa smurf)

Thanks pappa smurf. Mongo is not so tech savy either - that is why you could rightfully conclude from the desperation and urgency in the language used when Mongo posted this, that he FREAKED OUT too !

[MissionMan]

I would avoid Mackeeper. There are a couple of better alternatives out there and Mackeeper have a history of some very unethical behaviour. As an example, with one of their previous versions, when you uninstalled it would leave behind scripts that would constantly pop up prompts to reinstall the program and they used to used fake popups to try get people to install it and the web. A number of people even went as far as classifying it as Malware due to their unscrupulous practices. Do a search for Mackeeper and Malware and you find an extraordinary large amount of posts and articles about it.

I'll give you a couple of alternatives to consider when I get home and get access to my Mac. There are some free and paid alternatives I would recommend rather.

[mongo]

I would avoid Mackeeper. There are a couple of better alternatives out there and Mackeeper have a history of some very unethical behaviour. As an example, with one of their previous versions, when you uninstalled it would leave behind scripts that would constantly pop up prompts to reinstall the program and they used to used fake popups to try get people to install it and the web. A number of people even went as far as classifying it as Malware due to their unscrupulous practices. Do a search for Mackeeper and Malware and you find an extraordinary large amount of posts and articles about it.

I'll give you a couple of alternatives to consider when I get home and get access to my Mac. There are some free and paid alternatives I would recommend rather.

thank you very much Missionman, Mongo will be interested and keen to hear your recommendations as he feels this will be a useful tool in future. Mongo is concerned for Deb though and wonders if she is aware of this potential problem.

Look forward to hearing from you.

[MissionMan]

Clean my Mac 2 is one tool (requires purchase). There was a recent review on Mactalk about it.

Main Menu is another one I've used in the past (they have two versions at different prices)

Onyx is free if you want something you don't have to pay for and it does a lot of what the others do.

Unfortunately you just missed a macheist 10 apps for $9 special that incorporated clean my mac and a couple of other apps but if you're not in a rush to buy it, keep an eye out for discounted pricing which always happens on these kinds of sites. The other site that runs specials is macupdate.com. They have one app on special every day (50%-80% off) and every 6 months or so they run a major promo which includes 10-15 apps at about a 90% discount. Generally there is one major app (like Parallels) and a lot of smaller lesser know apps so I tend to keep an eye on them and if I want one of the apps, it's worth buying just for that.